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Sunday Snippet: Bullies in Training…

A couple of days ago I saw a headline “44% of Child Suicides in the U.K. are the Result of Bullying” and frankly I was surprised at the low statistic. I thought it would be much higher. In the United States 160 000 school age kids stay home from school every day to avoid bullying. How has this happened? Most bullying happens in public view – most bystanders do not intervene. Many people ask me about bullying – how their kids can avoid it and how they can prevent their kids from becoming bullies. The fact it is a post I have put off writing. I thought I could write a quick response – I can’t. There is no quick response or solution.

When I was a kid bullying involved the bigger kids putting the smaller kids in the garbage can and pelting them with whatever they could find. Parents and teacher’s would say “Don’t tell tales” or “Suck it up.” Well gone are those days… Bullying has become extremely personal and an open act of personal persecution. It is not limited to kids either… Teachers bully students, students bully teachers, co-workers bully co-workers… A quick read of Frank Peretti’s book will put any apathetic thoughts about bullying to rest:

This is his personal journey through school, and the relentless attacks that he suffered. I read this book a couple of years ago and it was a real wake-up call. While I have a zero-tolerance for bullying this book made me get into gear and have some sort of practical approach to bullying in our family. Bullies are no longer the class idiot, head and shoulders taller than the rest of the gang… they are clever, manipulative and conniving and very good at avoiding being observed by people that might take action. I new I needed to think about how to deal with the problem before it arose… Bullying is debilitating. We have all been victims of it at one stage or another, we have friends and children that are suffering and we need to address it in our kids from a very early age.

Bullying is not some sort of “right of passage” that your children have to pass through in order to become adults. Bullying is intolerable and as such should not be tolerated at any age. Enduring a bully does not in fact strengthen your child it weakens them and makes them feel more and more despondent and hopeless. We want our kids to grow up to grow up as “coping” adults then enduring a whole lot of bullying on the way is not going to enable your child to be the responsible adult you want them to be.

I often think that parents, especially Christian parents, are letting their children down when they teach their children to turn the other cheek. They are setting their children up to fail. The flimsy response: “Just ignore them” is nothing short of useless. So I went looking to see what the Bible really has to say about bullying and what a good response would be.

Lets have a look at the three main aspects of bullying and what role you as the parent are playing:

Ensure your children are not bullying:

For whatever reason, sometimes kids can lose the plot and behave really anti-socially. Even mine! Nip it in the bud and make sure that they know that you will not accept that. Don’t tolerate grabbing and taking toys from siblings, don’t tolerate name-calling and bullying in your home. I firmly believe it is the best place to learn how to behave appropriately. It is not enough to say to your kids: “Do not hit, bash, hurt…” because a lot of bully like behavior is verbal and mental abuse… and everyone knows that words hurt just as much, if not more than, sticks and stones.

Teach your child to empathize. Play “What if…?” games, that get them thinking what would it be like in other folks shoes. If they cannot intervene they should be able to call an adult that can. In a world where people are turning away from folk in trouble, for fear of litigation and this attitude is creeping into every facet of life, teach your kids to stand up for those in need. A book like The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes is a very good place to start.

It is the story of Maddie as she observes day by day the teasing and bullying of Wanda, a girl in her class that says she has a 100 dresses at home – even though she wears the same blue faded dress to school everyday. Maddie’s popular friend, Peggy, bullies Wanda daily and stirs the class up to laugh at her… Maddie knows it is wrong but says nothing – she doesn’t want to ruin a friendship. Eventually Wanda moves away and Maddie is left with no way to say she is sorry and regretting that she didn’t step in and say something sooner.

Make sure your that your children are not bullied:

My kids fall into two camps: those that look at bullies in a sort of bemused way – “Like, what is this kid doing?” and those that just deck the assailant with absolutely no thought process involved… Not surprisingly it is the more bemused kid that is more likely to be bullied. Your kids really need to know that bullying is not acceptable and while they don’t have to retaliate, turning the other cheek is not the correct response either. You can not protect your children from bullies – they are out there and your children will be better off learning how to cope with them. Our kids are growing up in a world surrounded by a number of bully-type folks and they need the life-skills to cope with it.

Se7en steps you can take to encourage your kids:

Communicate: with your child continuously about the goings on in their lives, you can’t watch them every second of every day, you cannot speak for them, you can not protect them from every incident – you have to give them the tools to cope in the world. And you have to recognize when your child is not them self. The kids that becomes evasive is the kid that is in trouble. Kids can be so very subtle – they don’t all gush their hearts out and they don’t all share every moment of everyday.

Listen: Most children are unlikely to come forward and tell you that a class-mate is consistently attacking them verbally or physically. There is a shamefulness associated with bullying that makes kids less likely to talk about it. The first time there is an incident they may talk about it but as the incidents happen repeatedly they tend to bottle it up.

Hope: Often they are really hoping for help, and that is the problem with the on-going-ness of bullying: Proverbs 13:12 (New International Version) Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. Most of us need some intervention to get out of a bullying situation. Often the first person they ask will look the other way – and I know why, they probably don’t want to deal with the bullies parents. Often, no matter how sweet they appear a bullies parents are hard to address – the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree after all. Your child needs to know that they they are important enough to seek help until they get it.

Body Language: Teach your child to have an attitude of confidence but not arrogance. And you can teach your child to walk purposefully across a playground. Make a game of it, make it fun. The child that tries to sneak across to “the safety of the other side” is far more likely to be noticed as a weaker playmate and to become the victim.

Words: Teach your child to be dismissive but not disdainful. A firm: “You may not talk to me like that” is often quite enough. Don’t encourage your child to share their feelings with the bully: “Your behavior really hurts my feelings” is really not going to elicit a whole lot of sympathy from a bully – it will in fact give them more “ammunition.”

They are not alone: Ask your child if they are the only victim. Often times a bully is performing the same type of behavior on a number of kids… if they can see that they are not the only victim it can be a small step in the direction of not taking the behavior personally.

And the “se7en + 1th” thing:

It is not your child’s job to understand the bully, yes bullies usually have their own personal pile of troubles, but your child is unlikely to be the one to change the bullies behavior. Your child needs to protect and heal themselves first. Your child needs to see the bullies behavior for what it is and change their response to the attacker. Often times a quick brainstorm with your kid: “What could you have done…” and go mad think up a riot of responses will help your child to see the bully and in a different and less threatening light. If in their mind they are trickling jelly down their attackers shirt as he approaches, I promise you they will be able to approach their attacker with more confidence.

19 Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching.

20″I have spoken openly to the world,” Jesus replied. “I always taught in synagogues or at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I said nothing in secret. 21Why question me? Ask those who heard me. Surely they know what I said.”

22When Jesus said this, one of the officials nearby struck him in the face. “Is this the way you answer the high priest?” he demanded.

23″If I said something wrong,” Jesus replied, “testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?”

When Jesus was publicly bullied he did not turn the other cheek. He did not cry “An eye for an eye” and strike the fellow back. He provided a model for us: He defended himself without retaliating, he asked the High Priest what he was thinking and he required a response. His response involved honor and courage – two things I would like to teach my children. His response required a strength of character that I would like to impart to my children, so that they may have an inner resolve that holds firm when they encounter the ravages of bullying.

10 responses so far ↓

Excellent post! I whole-heartedly agree with every bit of advice you gave. This is something that hits home with me big time. I was never bullied…but my youngest sister by 8years was and it was heartbreaking. I was in my early teens at the time and I felt helpless for her…not being an adult that could actually get something done about the matter. Now as a Mama, I make sure my girls know right away when they have crossed that line, make sure apologies are made and we come up with better ways to respond or interract for the next time. Of course, I love that we can turn to the Scriptures at any time in our lives and find answers to our trials and comfort for our heartache…along with sound advice and a Perfect Example on how best to make our way through this life and how we can show love, kindness, and charity to our fellow man. It is an amazing blessing. Sometimes I forget that I have such a rich resource and I’m always grateful for the reminder.

Thanks Stina, Glad you liked it… I thought it would be a quick and easy post to write but it took hours of thinking and rewriting and rethinking!!! I knew it wasn’t an easy topic when I started it!!! Hope you have a good week!!!

My children have so far not been bullied in a continued way… I pray that the day does not come. But when thinking about what to do it is so hard to know how to protect my child and yet teach them to love their enemy. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. Very helpful.

Hi Tara… Good question about loving your enemies!!! I could probably make a whole post about it!!! But when one of my children has someone that offends them – and they do… then that person goes onto their prayer list. They prayed for years for a guy that consistently hassled them and behaved badly towards them, that this boys heart may change. Last week our laundry was stolen (petty crime is a given in South African life), along with some brand new never worn birthday clothes. Whoever stole them got a lot of prayer that the clothes would make a difference in their lives and keep them warm during our cold winter. Just some examples but I hope that helps!!! Have a good week!!!

Wrote a comment earlier but it bombed. So I am back because I wanted to say I so think it is an issue that needs addressing. Thank you for having the courage to do so!! I liked everything about this post and learnt a lot!!

Hi J, Sorry about the comments… I have a feeling a few of mine have been hitting hyperspace this week so thanks for persevering!!! Bullying is never an easy topic I think we would all like to just brush it under the carpet… but it has become such an issue that it has to be addressed. On that note – I hope you guys have a fun week!!!

I just love this post so much! LOVE your scriptures from the Bible and the example of Jesus.

I’ve never been one of those turn the other cheek parents because I’ve seen bullying in action (growing up) and unfortunately or fortunately, I have a big mouth (!) so I always stood up for the underdog. Fortunately for me, I was well-liked (not extremely popular, but just liked well enough and respected) that I didn’t get them coming after me.

Although one time some boy said something really rude to me and I turned around and decked him on the jaw (!). After that, no-one messed with me.